ATLANTA UNTRAPPED: Migos’ 'Culture II' is too damn long

Photo credit: Courtesy Quality Control, Motown, Capitol Records

MIGOS: 'Culture 2'

By Jewel WickerThursday February 8, 2018 12:00 am EST

The previous weekend for Migos could’ve been massive. The trio released the follow up to 2017’s Culture and were nominated for two Grammys. If the album was received well and they secured their first Grammy win the accomplishments would solidify the Atlanta trap rappers’ status in the genre for another year. In an age where Soundcloud mumble rappers have pushed the boundaries of hip-hop and continuously ignored traditional genre conventions, Migos would continue to rule the trap scene.

But, Culture II doesn’t live up to its predecessor, and Migos didn’t win a Grammy. The latter wasn’t terribly surprising. Securing one of five nominations, Childish Gambino (aka Donald Glover) was the only Atlanta rapper to leave New York with an award. Like East Atlanta singer/rapper 6lack, Migos were up against stiff competition. The group lost to Kendrick Lamar in the Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Album categories.

The mediocrity of Culture II was much more of a disappointment than Migos not being victorious at an awards show that has long been criticized by rap fans as out of touch.

Culture II has a few standout numbers: “Narcos” finds Quavo declaring, “This real rap, no mumble” over a Spanish guitar. Four songs into the lengthy album, 21 Savage offers the first big moment with “BBO” (“Bad bitches only, bad bitches on me”), speeding up the tempo as the album begins to feel monotonous.

Migos follows “Narcos” and “BBO” with “Auto Pilot” and the Drake-assisted “Walk It Talk It,” two songs that capitalize on the group’s knack for repetitive hooks, and could have easily been featured on the superior Culture album. Whereas all three rappers have noteworthy verses on the album, they’ve clearly learned their individual strengths. Quavo delivers the group’s signature hooks, Offset adds drama with his ad-libs, and Takeoff offers a final standout verse to close the song. Takeoff might have been “left off 'Bad and Boujee,’” but long time Migos fans have always recognized the rapper as an integral part of the group’s formula.

As the album progresses, though, the songs become predictable. An album that spans nearly two hours, Culture II overwhelmingly feels like a lazy release for a group of rappers who have become mainstays on the Billboard charts and label-influenced streaming playlists such as Spotify’s Rap Caviar.

“... it seems more likely to be another attempt to game the current Billboard and RIAA rules, in which 1,500 individual song streams count towards one full album sale (thus, the more songs on an album, the higher and faster it charts).”

We’ll find out soon if Migos’ lengthy album worked in their favor chart-wise, but one thing is for certain: Culture II isn’t a terrible album but it’s mediocrity hurts Migos more than it helps the trio. It's likely the album will also hurt the group’s credibility for fans who previously believed Migos weren't capable of making anything other than bangers.

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